I Guess This is Growing Up
by andhopeto
Summary: Of friendship, sex, and heartache. Of having fun and growing up.


**Title: **(I Guess) This is Growing Up**  
Pairing:** Blaine/Kurt**  
Rating: **PG-13**  
Word Count: **2,000**  
Summary:** Of friendship, sex, and heartache. Of having fun and growing up.**  
Warnings: **Homophobia (someone is physically assaulted for being gay)**  
Disclaimer: **I don't own the rights to any of these characters. I simply dabble in this toybox.

* * *

I took five random songs, took a line or two from each song, and used the lyrics as a basic prompt.

They are in chronological order, all set in the same general universe, but each stands alone.

* * *

**Everclear ~ Learning How to Smile**

_And we never ask why there is no perfect place, yes I know this is true._

_I'm just learning how to smile; that's not easy to do.  
_

"So."

Kurt looked up at the sound of Blaine's voice, distracting him away from the thoughts that wouldn't leave him be. A smile immediately broke out across his face. Blaine sat down across from him, looking down at all the papers Kurt had laid out in front of him.

"Studying?" Blaine asked him, words laced with genuine concern. It seemed like every time Blaine found the time to approach him, he was busy with schoolwork.

Then again, it seemed like Kurt was _always_ busy with schoolwork, whether Blaine was around to distract him or not. He couldn't remember a time when he had ever worked so hard just to keep a mediocre grade from slipping any further.

He'd complained to Mr. Schuester about not being "challenged in the least", but the study load he had at Dalton was nearly overwhelming.

"Not anymore," said Kurt, throwing caution to the wind and closing his textbook. "I'm all yours."

"Oh, really?" Blaine asked suggestively, causing Kurt's cheeks to redden. He hadn't meant it like _that_.

He wished he had the courage to say, "Yes. Yes, I am," or some other reply in the affirmative. The courage to ask Blaine if all this flirty banter was all in his head, or if it was real, if Blaine felt for him the same things Kurt felt for Blaine.

"You know what I meant," he chided, sweeping bravery under the table and out of sight.

"Yeah," said Blaine, warm smile lighting up his face as he looked into Kurt's eyes, "I know what you meant."

**Fall Out Boy ~ Nobody Puts Baby In The Corner**

_Keep quiet; nothing comes as easy as you._

_Can I lay in your bed all day?  
_

"Touch me," Kurt said. His voice was barely a whisper, trying to stay as quiet as possible.

Blaine knelt between his legs, staring at him in wonder.

Kurt didn't want Blaine to treat him like glass, but he didn't want to push him into doing anything he didn't want to do, either. Sometimes it was hard to tell if Blaine was playing coy because he didn't want to go any further, or if it was because he didn't want to push _Kurt_ to go any further.

"Please," he added. He sit up enough to put a hand around the back of Blaine's neck to draw him down for a kiss. He felt better when Blaine relaxed into his touch, leaning in on his own as the back of Kurt's head rested against the pillow.

This was nice, thought Kurt. Blaine was touching him, now straddling one of his thighs, hands resting on his waist. Most importantly, his mouth was on Kurt's, and their lips touched and tongues met one another, the boys reveling in each other's taste.

**Regina Spektor ~ Your Honor**

_Gargle with peroxide, a steak for your eye._

_But I'm a pizzatarian, so it's a frozen pizza pie._

_You tell me that you love me and you never do lie._

Kurt heard the front door creak open and closed, but he didn't hear Blaine's customary cheerful, "Darling, I'm home!"

Kurt had, on more than one occasion, made fun of Blaine for it, citing it cheesy and not at all romantic, but that didn't mean he'd meant it.

Actually, he _had_ meant it. But that didn't mean he wanted Blaine to _stop_. Living together was still a novelty, and a secret thrill went through him every time Blaine said it. He had started to expect to hear it whenever Blaine got in later than Kurt.

Then again, it was pretty early. Maybe he didn't know Kurt was already back. His last class had been canceled, and instead of getting some schoolwork done in the campus library, he'd gone home to relax and take his time with it.

"Blaine?" he called out, surprised to hear his boyfriend curse.

He set down his sketch pad and pencil and headed in the direction of Blaine's voice, which led him to the bathroom.

"What the hell happened?" he asked, perfectly aware his own voice was on the shrill side. One side of Blaine's face was red and bloodied and already starting to swell and turn an ugly purple color.

"I didn't think you'd be home already," Blaine said under his breath, avoiding Kurt's question. He ran the water in the sink, but Kurt wasn't having this. He pushed Blaine, carefully, but firmly, down onto the toilet seat.

"Sit," he commanded. "Who did this?" Kurt grabbed a washcloth out from under the sink, one that was older and starting to turn tatty and was worn down to softness. He wet it and then held Blaine's head back by his hair, carefully dabbing at the blood on his face. Blaine closed his eyes, allowing Kurt to wash his wounds without a fuss.

"You know, my mom used to do this for me," he said. Kurt could barely make out the words, they came out so thick and so quietly that they were hard to hear. Kurt's hand paused over Blaine's face.

"Was this because of…?" he asked, hurt infusing every word.

"Nothing new," Blaine said, trying to laugh it off. "It's fine. You should see the other guy." He lifted his hands to show his knuckles were scraped up and dotted with dried blood from the skin breaking.

"It is _not_ 'all right'." Kurt held so much fury and worry and concern and fear, it felt like it would consume him at that moment.

"No. No it isn't," Blaine said quietly. He put his hands on Kurt's waist and looked straight up into his eyes. "But I mean it. You should see the other guy. Last _I_ saw, he was in the back of a police cruiser with at least three people giving their statements, ready to crucify the asshole."

Kurt breathed out a laugh, more out of relief than any amusement. He ignored the tears pricking at his eyes.

"Wash your hands. I'll get something for your face," he said, leaving the bathroom before he could get any more openly emotional.

Kurt stood still in the kitchen, searching his mind for what it was he'd walked in for.

Right. Peas.

He'd pulled a bag out of the freezer and had only just wrapped it in a couple paper towels when Blaine came in and wrapped his arms around Kurt's waist, leaning in close, standing chest-to-chest.

"I love you," Blaine said, as if that somehow made up for all the people in the world who had a problem with that, as if just by saying it, feeling it, it made them irrelevant.

"I love you, too," said Kurt, finding that it worked. At least for the moment.

"You got me peas? Oh, darling, you didn't have to," Blaine teased after a minute, pulling back from Kurt just enough to look at him, arms still looped around him. He was smiling, and Kurt had an idea of just how painful it was at the moment for him to do so, between the bloodied jaw and bruised heart.

It made him love Blaine even more.

He gently pressed the bag to his boyfriend's face, careful not to cover up that precious smile.

**Lady Gaga ~ Just Dance**

_I love this record baby, but I can't see straight anymore._

_Keep it cool, what's the name of this club?_

_I can't remember, but it's all right, all right._

_Just dance; gonna be okay.  
_

Blaine stood up on the tips of his toes, angling his head left and right trying to find his wayward boyfriend. Between the too loud music, the thumping bass and the shots he'd downed earlier, all his senses were running raw. Trying to focus long enough to spot Kurt in the crowded club was a difficulty.

Finally, there, across the dance floor. Kurt was dancing enthusiastically with a stranger. Or at least Blaine assumed he was a stranger; _he_ had never seen the guy before.

"Kurt?" he shouted as he drew near. Immediately, Kurt withdrew from the man he was dancing with. He turned to Blaine and offered him a sloppy smile, wrapping his arms around Blaine's torso.

"Dance with me!" Kurt's limbs were loose and relaxed. His eyes were open wide and shining brightly when the strobe lights illuminated their little pocket of the dance floor.

"Yeah." Blaine smiled stupidly, pulling Kurt in for a heated kiss. The other guy took the hint, thankfully, turning around to find a new dance partner.

"Love you," Kurt said into his ear. "I am so in love with you."

"You're wasted," Blaine huffed, amusement coloring his tone. His hands strayed downward, slipping his hands into Kurt's back pockets.

"And in love."

"Yeah, and that," he conceded. "I love you too."

"You better," Kurt said, pulling away from Blaine, body gyrating to the beat of the music. "Now, dance with me."

**Desaparecidos - Mañana**

_What you learned, what you read in their books: all they offered._

_What you saw when they told you to look: a final offer._

_Well, today we are giving birth to a new future._

"I can hardly believe it's been ten years."

Blaine looked at Kurt, cocking his head a little to the side and smiling.

"As in 'I can't believe ten years have passed', or 'I can't believe it's only been ten years'?" he asked.

"Both?" Kurt said, hedging.

Blaine laughed and pulled Kurt down for a chaste kiss: quick, but full with affection.

Kurt stared at William McKinley High School with the look of someone who's not entirely sure if he's just been offered a rare treat or something disgusting as a cruel joke.

"Come on," Blaine urged him, taking Kurt by the hand.

"Maybe I don't want to," Kurt said, not looking entirely pleased by the thought.

"You're the one who dragged me all the way back to Ohio to go to this thing," Blaine said, smiling wide. "Don't tell me you're going to chicken out now."

Kurt cut him off with a withering glare that was only half teasing. Maybe not even that much.

"Don't say it," Kurt said, pointing a finger at him in warning.

"Courage!" Blaine said, laughing and trying to squirm away when Kurt pinched him for it.

"Look at you two," said a familiar voice, words thick with disapproval, "carrying on like school children. One would think you were still students."

"It's nice to see you too, Rachel," Kurt said dryly, turning around to face her. Blaine immediately walked over to her and offered her a hug.

"You look amazing," Blaine said, kissing her cheek.

"Oh, I've _missed you_," she said. Once Blaine let go of her, she marched over to Kurt and hugged him tightly.

"If you wrinkle this suit, I can't promise there won't be bloodshed," Kurt threatened half-heartedly. He smiled when she withdrew to give him a dirty look. "It's been too long."

"It's only been three months," Rachel said.

"I _know_," said Kurt in disbelief. "If someone had told me twelve years ago that one day I'd think three months was too long to go without seeing Rachel Berry in person, I'd have had them committed."

"Ha, ha," Rachel said, but she was beaming beautifully.

"I think I see Mercedes," said Blaine, pressing a hand to the small of Kurt's back. Kurt immediately lit up, standing back and arching his head to look around the parking lot as people made their way into the school. "Over there," he said, gesturing so that Kurt could find her, too.

"Come on, let's go," Kurt said. He grabbed Blaine's hand and started over towards her and her husband, Rachel following along on her own.

"I practically have to drag him here from the hotel," Blaine said to Rachel, tone rich with amusement, "and the moment he sees Mercedes, he almost rips my arm out of its socket to get to her."

"Stop whining. I'll kiss it better later," said Kurt, distracted.

Blaine and Rachel shared a look with each other, both beaming, entertained by Kurt's sudden eagerness.

"Well, this is going to be a fun high school reunion," Blaine said.

"You didn't even _go_ here," Rachel and Kurt said in unison.

* * *

_"I've been here for too long to face this on my own.  
"Well, I guess this is growing up."_

_~ Blink 182 - Dammit_

* * *

Reviews, con-crit, and 'oh, hey, I think you're missing a word'-s are always welcome and appreciated.


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